Sunday, February 13, 2011

Bob Herbert: Losing Democracy in the USA

Quote of the Day

As the throngs celebrated in Cairo, I couldn’t help wondering about what is happening to democracy here in the United States. . We’re in serious danger of becoming a democracy in name only. It doesn’t really matter what ordinary people want. The wealthy call the tune, and the politicians dance. .

The poor, who are suffering from an all-out depression, are never heard from. In terms of their clout, they might as well not exist. The Obama forces reportedly want to raise a billion dollars or more for the president’s re-election bid. Politicians in search of that kind of cash won’t be talking much about the wants and needs of the poor. They’ll be genuflecting before the very rich. . . The Egyptians want to establish a viable democracy, and that’s a long, hard road. Americans are in the mind-bogglingly self-destructive process of letting a real democracy slip away.